Shields fit after bout of fowl play
BRAD SHIELDS will make his Wasps debut against Exeter tomorrow still feeling the after-effects of the rogue chicken sandwich that clipped his wings on England’s tour to South Africa almost three months ago.
Eddie Jones’ wild-card pick had to surrender his third Test starting jersey to Chris Robshaw because of severe food poisoning after a lunch out with his parents in Durban backfired. He was taken to hospital, put on a drip and ended up losing more than a stone in weight.
“I had a chicken sandwich that looked pretty good to me – I made sure I checked it – but then it went from there,” said Shields.
“It was pretty bad. It was probably the worst I have been sick in my life. Usually it lasts for a couple of days but this was about 10 days by the time I started putting some weight back on and started to feel normal.
“It took a while to bounce back. In fact, I’m still sort of bouncing back now I guess, putting on all that weight, but I’m feeling pretty good.”
The illness put a dampener on an eventful trip that saw the New Zealand-born-and-based flanker parachuted in from Wellington to make his England debut off the bench as an emergency second row at Ellis Park and then start his first Test for his parents’ homeland in Bloemfontein.
“Coming into a team with only a week to train before a Test is pretty unusual,” he said. “The thing which stuck out for me was the amount of work everyone else put in to help me out and get me ready for that first Test. They’re such a great bunch of guys and they made it so easy for me to slip in and get on with my work.
“It could have gone one of two ways. I could have been an outcast in the team and felt a bit awkward about things or just kicked on and do my best and they put me in the position to do that.
“When I showed up on the Monday, the amount of people that came up to welcome me was unreal.
“I had such an amazing time and it was such an honour to represent the country and play international rugby, which was cool.”
The controversy that surrounded Shields’ selection as an overseas player with no experience of English rugby was intense but it will all be water under the bridge once he pulls on a Wasps shirt for the first time. He will, though, carry a weight of REPORTS expectation after England call-up.
“To be completely honest with you, I do feel pressure to perform,” he said. “I just hope the pressure is channelled in the right direction.
“I want to do really well for this team and I don’t want to let anyone down. I’ve got my head around as much as I could over the past two weeks. We’ll see how it goes on the weekend.
“I know once I get on the field and I make my first carry or my first tackle then everything will be gone and it will be like riding a bike again. I will be balls out as usual.”
That is Shields’ way. By the looks of his bloodshot right eye and five stitches in his eyebrow, he has already been putting himself about in training with his new club.
Wasps beat three Premiership clubs to sign him. The 27-yearold was attracted by the style of rugby; his wife by Leamington Spa.
A workhorse back row in the Robshaw mould, he is regarded by Chris Boyd – Northampton’s director of rugby – as the most professional player he coached at the Hurricanes, which is some accolade given the company he kept.
There was an amusing moment when asked what he might bring to the Wasps environment as a Kiwi. “I’m supposed to be English,” Shields said with a smile.
SUSPENDED Chris Ashton will not play until after England name their autumn Test squad after the RFU pushed back his ban date by a week until October 16. Sale were found to have included a cancelled friendly on their original match list to the disciplinary panel. his unique